Bloomberg to coach over 50 journalists on financial reporting in Tanzania

By The Citizen Reporter

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Dar es Salaam. The Bloomberg Media Initiative Africa (BMIA) has today announced the second intake of its Financial Journalism Training (FJT) programme

in Tanzania, which will train journalists and media professionals in business and financial journalism, to bolster the country’s financial reporting industry.

The resumption of the programme follows a two-year hiatus which was prompted by the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Conducted in partnership with Strathmore Business School, the University of Dar es Salaam Business School, and the University of Dar es Salaam School of Journalism and Mass Communication, this follows a successful first intake in 2019 which saw more than 40 journalists graduate from the programme.

The second intake will see over 50 journalists and professionals from government, the private and non-profit sectors and Tanzania’s major media organizations trained over six-months on topics including data analysis, capital markets, accounting, public policy, economics and the transforming media landscape to strengthen their skills and knowledge in business and financial reporting. The training will be facilitated by Bloomberg News reporters and faculty of the universities involved.

The Financial Journalism Training programme aims to accelerate the development of a globally competitive media and financial reporting industry in Tanzania, to further transparency, accountability, and good governance in the country and continent at large. It is a core component of the BMIA, which aims to contribute to the advancement of business and financial reporting in Africa, recognising the important role the media plays in promoting transparency, accountability and good governance.

Commenting on the announcement, Erana Stennett, director at Bloomberg Media Initiative Africa, said: “We are pleased to be resuming the Financial Journalism Training Programme in Tanzania after a two-year pause. We believe that equipping journalists with the skills and knowledge to better report on business and financial matters is complementary to Tanzania’s continued economic growth and progress.”

For his part, Bank of Tanzania Governor Prof Florens Luoga said: “At this critical post-pandemic period, strong business and economic media reporting is core to keeping stakeholders informed in order to accelerate Tanzania’s economic recovery. By training more journalists, BMIA’s programme is contributing to Tanzania’s ongoing economic development and progress.”

The launch of the second intake in Tanzania follows the programme’s success in Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa, Ghana, Zambia, Ivory Coast and Senegal, where over 600 delegates have graduated to date.

BMIA was launched in 2014.

, BMIA has reached more than 1,000 stakeholders in Africa. BMIA has also sponsored four annual conferences for media owners and senior leaders in business, government and civil society.